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Sheffield AI Meetup: Industrial AI & Vibe Coding — April 2026

Event artwork for Sheffield AI Meetup: Industrial AI & Vibe Coding — April 2026

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About this event

What to expect

Sheffield AI returns to Hideaway on 16 April for a night of industrial-strength AI talks, exploring how machine learning and automation solve real-world manufacturing challenges.

This April meetup tackles AI where it matters most — on factory floors, production lines, and quality control systems where precision is non-negotiable. Expect three talks spanning vibe coding, AI-powered customer service, and industrial anomaly detection, plus plenty of time to connect with Sheffield's thriving AI community over drinks.

What to Expect

The evening opens with Steve Cheshire from Koala discussing vibe coding in 2026 — a lightning talk exploring how developers are building with AI-native workflows and what that means for software creation. If you're curious about tools like Cursor, Lovable, or v0, this session will give you fresh perspective on where the practice is heading.

Jonas Ruginis from Nocturne Agents follows with insights from building AI voice support for eCommerce businesses. Learn how conversational AI is transforming customer service, the technical challenges of deploying voice agents at scale, and what it takes to make AI sound natural when handling real customer queries.

The main event features Jim Carroll, CTO at Digica, delivering a deep dive into "AI for Industry: Turning Data into Quality". Jim brings battle-tested experience applying machine learning to manufacturing environments where mistakes cost millions. His talk covers:

  • Anomaly detection and quality monitoring systems for production lines
  • Tackling the challenge of limited defect examples in industrial datasets
  • Using synthetic data to train robust models when real-world failures are rare
  • Why edge deployment matters for real-time decision-making in factories
  • Case studies: defect detection in silicon wafers and automated paint quality testing

This isn't academic AI — it's the practical, messy, high-stakes world where ChatGPT and Claude meet physical manufacturing. Whether you're working in automation, data science, or just curious about how AI solves tangible problems, Jim's session promises actionable insights from the field.

Who Should Attend

This meetup welcomes anyone interested in AI, machine learning, automation, or industrial applications of technology. You'll find data scientists, engineers, founders, and curious technologists — all levels welcome. The Sheffie

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